IAEA chief secretly dealing with Iran to end nuclear sanctions - India News and Travel Times Provides India-centric and other News and Features

Mohamed ElBaradei, the chief of United Nations' nuclear watchdog IAEA, has reportedly been in secret talks with Iranian officials to reach an agreement that would lift the international sanctions imposed on Tehran in exchange for its co-operation with UN inspectors. According to the Times, the 13-point agreement was drawn up in September by ElBaradei in an effort to break the stalemate over Iran's nuclear programme before he steps down at the end of this month. The IAEA, however, denied the existence of such a document. But experts believe that ElBaradei was hoping to secure a deal with Tehran that he could present to the US, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany as a solution to the impasse. It was thought that ElBaradei was anxious to secure his legacy after infighting over his perceived weakness in dealing with Iran. ElBaradei's draft agreement allows Iran to maintain and even expand its uranium enrichment programme despite closer IAEA scrutiny, as part of a globally managed nuclear fuel bank. "The sides are to set up an international consortium for uranium enrichment, both in Iran and outside Iran," the document said. A section of the document proposed that if Iran complied with the arrangements, the signatories would report positively to the UN Security Council, where Iran would be rewarded with the lifting of sanctions. "At first, the sanctions prohibiting the movement of scientists and technicians are to be lifted immediately, as are the sanctions connected to the supply of spare parts for aircraft and other essential activities," it says. The disclosure coincides with the warning that Iran may be concealing multiple nuclear plants.